The chief executive of Propertymark says latest data from letting agents suggests rent rises may have peaked – but that could still spell bad news. 

Nathan Emerson says:  “We are starting to seeing a decrease in demand, the knock on effect is that less agents are seeing rent rises. It’s possible that prices have peaked, and landlords are well aware that any more rises won’t necessarily be achieved. 

“This is not all good news however, as landlords costs are still rising, leaving many facing a very real possibility of making a loss.”

His comments come with the release of figures for November from the letting agents’ trade body.

They show an average of 77 new applicants were registered per member branch. This number has continued the drop off since September’s high of 147; however, it is still above the pre-pandemic average.

Some 11 properties on average per member branch were available to rent, while 49 per cent of member branches reported month-on-month rent prices increasing.

On the sales side, Emerson continues: “The sales market is firmly back in the hands of buyers who have been on the back foot for 18 months. More property is available but the competition between those looking has cooled substantially. For those motivated to sell, good, solid buyers are still prominent.”

He says the number of new buyers registering per member branch dropped again to 52 in November—down from a high of 86 in August. The average number of viewings per property continued to fall in November and now stands at 2.6.

New instructions were down on average to eight per member branch in November, while the average number of properties available to buy per member branch rose slightly to 33. This compares to a pre-pandemic average for November of 38.

The average number of sales agreed per member branch dropped to six in November — down from 10 in September.

Some 72 per cent of Propertymark member branches had most sales agreed below asking price in November.